After years of development delays, the MCU’s Nova is finally seeing some movement. Michael Waldron, the writer of Loki and Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, is reportedly working on a script that will introduce the last surviving member of the Nova Corps to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The writer’s most recent project is the second season of Chad Powers, a football comedy he created with Top Gun: Maverick star Glen Powell. Their partnership has led to interesting questions around Waldron’s Nova. And he’s not in a position to confirm or deny anything.
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In a recent interview with Variety, Waldron was asked about his collaboration with Sam Raimi on Multiverse of Madness and if he had the ambition to direct a Marvel film. The conversation then pivoted to Nova and whether he would be willing to cast his pal Powell as the lead. Knowing how Kevin Feige reacts to leaks, Waldron answered in the most diplomatic way possible: “These are the questions to be hypothetically asking someone who was hypothetically directing the movie. But that person, if they wanted to hold on to that job, should not answer those questions.”
That’s certainly one way to maintain job security until Marvel actually announces you have the job. Waldron has avoided confirming he’s taking the helm on Nova, but he’s hypothetically saying the interviewer is asking the right questions. And the hypothetical answers could see one of the biggest stars of the last five years trade in the football helmet of Chad Powers for a Nova Corps helmet and cosmic powers.
Marvel Has Already Set Up Nova’s Origin Story
Richard Rider’s first appearance was in 1976’s The Man Called Nova #1, created by Marv Wolfman and John Buscema. In a bit of a lift from Green Lantern, a dying alien named Rhomann Dey transfers his powers to a Long Island teenager, transforming him into Earth’s first Nova. During the Annihilation storyline, the Corps was decimated, leaving Rider to carry the Corps’ legacy. The MCU has already done the heavy lifting on that last part.
The Nova Corps was a major part of 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy, with Glenn Close playing Nova Prime and John C. Reilly appearing as Rhomann Dey. The Corps is decimated off-screen, with Thanos revealing he destroyed their homeworld of Xandar to retrieve the power stone before the opening scenes of Avengers: Infinity War. That’s a pretty convenient place to start for introducing a new Nova. For his part, John C. Reilly has made it clear he’s game to return to Corps and pass the torch. He’s just waiting for a call from Marvel. We may also already know the movie’s villain. Peter Serafinowicz played Denarian Garthan Saal, a high-ranking Nova Corps officer. In the comics, he eventually becomes Supernova, a villain driven insane after absorbing the Nova Corps’ collective power. He may have died in GOTG, but it’s the MCU and we don’t know how the Nova Corps power works. Our first look at the Nova Corps was of Reilly and Serafinowicz in the Guardians of the Galaxy trailer. Here’s every trailer from that franchise:
Nova has been in stalled development for years. After James Gunn was fired from Marvel, Nova was slated for a television debut during the Chapek era of flooding Disney+ with Marvel series. Like Armor Wars, its been reconfigured into a movie pitch, but also like Armor Wars, it’s been tough getting any word on forward movement. Marvel has yet to officially announce a director, star, or release date, and Waldron has proven his commitment to keeping those things secret, though he did previously let it slip he at least thought Powell would be good in the role. Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige is a master at keeping secrets. He famously told Tom Holland to hush when the actor accidentally spoiled Avengers: Infinity War to an audience that hadn’t seen it yet. Waldron doesn’t intend to be on the receiving end of that gesture. But if he does end up being Nova‘s director, he’s already got a leading man in his group chat. Hypothetically, of course.
